The data released today showcase the need for better service delivery and a better data system for New York City’s more than 200,000 students with disabilities.

While the data show incremental improvements, we are alarmed that more than 20 percent of students with disabilities—nearly 40,000 students—are still going without the full special education instruction they are entitled to receive under the law. Given the 40-point gap in reading proficiency between students with disabilities and their nondisabled peers, it is essential that the DOE ensure students with disabilities receive the instruction they need.

To help ensure students get the services they need, we also need data we can trust. Two years ago, the DOE issued an assessment report on the Special Education Student Information System (SESIS) finding it “apparent that improvements are needed.” But the data report released today shows that the DOE still lacks the internal systems to report data with the necessary accuracy. The City must improve the reliability of its special education data and provide parents with full access to their child’s SESIS records so that parents can monitor their child’s special education evaluations, programs, and services.